How To Complete All The Challenges In 'Dragon Quest Builders'

The cursed armor from the final chapter in the game. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

Since the release of Dragon Quest Builders in the West, I went back and decided to play through the whole game again from scratch. This time completing all the challenges as I went and here are the fruits of my labors.

In each chapter of the game, you have five challenges. The first two are always to finish the chapter within a set amount of time and to upgrade your base to its maximum level. The other three challenges are then specific to that chapter.

The reason why you do the challenges at all is that they unlock recipes and items that can be used in other chapters as well as in the freeplay mode, Terra Incognita.

Chapter 1: Cantlin

The first chapter in the game is probably the easiest. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

Like the original localization of Dragon Quest in the West, known as Dragon Warrior, Merukido has been renamed to Cantlin. This is the first area in the game and it’s arguably the easiest. However, the challenges can be a bit difficult.

Completing the chapter in 20 days is manageable but it’s best that you don’t sleep and getting your base to level 5 is again not too hard, just remember to put everything in a room.

As for the other challenges, the first has you defeat three dragons. These are hidden across each of the islands and it’s advisable to do this after you’ve done the first two challenges and killed the boss. This way you have the best armor and weapons for the chapter, which in turn makes killing the dragons easier.

Building a Cantlin garden is a bit more complex. This is a reference to a garden in the original Dragon Quest and requires a pond, some plants and a tree. As you cannot create water from scratch in the game, you have to bring it in from elsewhere. This is a bit tricky and is something you have to figure out depending on the layout of your base. It also tends to mean the garden is almost underground, the only thing there is that you need to have a door on the ground level to make sure the garden counts as a room.

As for repairing the Hammerhood’s graveyard, this requires you learn a recipe to build a gravestone on the third island and then bring that to an unfinished graveyard on the second island. Finding the graveyard on the second island is straightforward enough and you are given directions to find what you need from there.

One final piece of advice is that generally focus on the timed challenged first and then defeat the boss and exit the level. After that, you can go back and do the other challenges at your leisure.

Chapter 2: Rimuldar

The timed challenge on the second chapter is a bit more technical. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The challenges on this chapter are mostly straightforward, except for the first timed challenge of completing the chapter within 30 days.

The reason for this is twofold; the first is that the emphasis in this chapter is to heal various people from sickness. This requires an infirmary and each patient has various requirements in terms of their recovery.

Each of the patients will then rest one night until they make another request. Some have multiple items they require and this means they take as many days to get better.

This means you need to get all the patients into the infirmary at the same time, so you can heal them all simultaneously to save time.

The Hollyhock plants you have to grow in order to complete the final quest in the chapter. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The second reason this is a difficult challenge is that the final patient requires a potion that needs five Hollyhock plants. This turns into a quest where you have to defeat a dragon and then capture the last Hollyhock plant. This is then converted into two seeds and then has to be grown. To make five plants takes a few days, so be aware of the timing for this.

As for the rest of the challenges, they are all easy enough. Repairing the broken roof is undertaken on the second island and is fairly obvious. Completing all of Thalamus’ puzzles is worth doing as you do your playthrough though, as you get an accessory that protects you from all ailments.

Each of Thalamus' puzzles are located as stone structures on each island. On completion of the first three you are given a colored block, on the fourth island you need these blocks to complete the final puzzle.

Finally, obtaining the Crown Goowels is done by fishing in the slime shaped pond on the third island and fighting the King Slime that pops up. It's easy and quick to do.

This chapter starts to raise the stakes and makes it initially hard to get both food and medicine. On the former, just make your way to the desert on the first island and find some prickly peaches. These are next to cacti dotted across the desert. You will need a mallet to break through to the desert but it is worth doing once you get it.

The timed challenge is again a tricky one but not sleeping and getting coal and copper resources from the desert as soon as you can really helps speed things up.

That said, while killing all the trolls and gigantes is not necessary on your first run. Killing the green troll on the second island is recommended. This is because you get some useful accessories from chests nearby and they make progression quicker.

The Spectacular spa is probably the most complex blueprint in the game. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

Building the Spectacular spa is something I recommend you do after you have killed the boss and finished the chapter. However, before that make sure to leave some Medicinal shrubs and Ivy intact, as you will need them in the construction of the spa. You also need a special fountain and this is awarded for blocking a peephole in a bath on the second island.

The special slime lyre is also tucked away in a cave on the third island. You will need blue blocks to complete a slime outline to gain access to the cave. Once this recipe is unlocked, it can be used in every chapter in the game. Its purpose is to change the game’s music to the 8-bit original version used in the classic Dragon Quest games.

Final Chapter: Tantegel

The Hero's armor from the final chapter in the game. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The final chapter in the game and probably the easiest in terms of completing all the challenges, so much so that you can do them all on your first run through the chapter.

The timed challenge is done easily by avoiding sleep and finishing the first island as quickly as you can. Once on the second island, you can power up very quickly and it’s recommended that you focus on that before acquiring the Banner of Hope.

Once you have completed all the quests for the chapter and just have the final boss left, it’s worth hunting down the cursed armor on the first island. It is located in a cave atop the mountains behind your base.

The Verdant vision requires a bit of backtracking in order to complete. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The layout inside the cave is quite complex and requires keys from enemies to progress. Once the armor has been attained, do not equip it. This is because once equipped it cannot be removed. However, if you use the sheen salts as they will destroy the armor.

The armor should only be used on the boss fight, as it makes the first part more manageable.

To kill the Dragonlord without the hero’s armor means you cannot use the Hero’s shield or Auroral armor, however the Sword of Kings is permitted. It's important you administer the final blow on the second part of the final boss fight without the hero's armor equipped in order to complete this challenge.

As for the Verdant vision, this is attained by speaking to three slimes atop mountains across the first three islands. Each requires a special plant and they award you with their dreams. On the final island, you then have to get a recipe from the King Slime, which requires the three dreams and more plants to make. Once you have made the Verdant vision bring it back to the King Slime to complete the challenge.

Speed Is Of The Essence

In general, the toughest of the challenges on each chapter is the timed one in terms of completion. Some are easier than others are but in general, they require you not to sleep and work through the night in order to finish on time.

You also need to make sure you kill the boss and make it to the portal for the next chapter in order to complete the timed challenge.

If you also want to keep track of how long you are taking, your current day count is listed in your Status menu.

In addition, it’s best to focus on the timed challenge on the first three chapters before attempting the other challenges. The exception to this is the final chapter, where you can do all the challenges at once.

Dragon Quest Builders is a great game though and I can still recommend it to everyone. After playing through the game now a third time in its entirety, it is safe to say it just gets better and better. So go and save Alefgard and make sure to get the slime lyre, as that brings backs the 8-bit music feels from the classic games.

I've also created a video explaining some of the above in more detail and that is shown below.

The cursed armor from the final chapter in the game. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

Since the release of Dragon Quest Builders in the West, I went back and decided to play through the whole game again from scratch. This time completing all the challenges as I went and here are the fruits of my labors.

In each chapter of the game, you have five challenges. The first two are always to finish the chapter within a set amount of time and to upgrade your base to its maximum level. The other three challenges are then specific to that chapter.

The reason why you do the challenges at all is that they unlock recipes and items that can be used in other chapters as well as in the freeplay mode, Terra Incognita.

Chapter 1: Cantlin

The first chapter in the game is probably the easiest. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

Like the original localization of Dragon Quest in the West, known as Dragon Warrior, Merukido has been renamed to Cantlin. This is the first area in the game and it’s arguably the easiest. However, the challenges can be a bit difficult.

Completing the chapter in 20 days is manageable but it’s best that you don’t sleep and getting your base to level 5 is again not too hard, just remember to put everything in a room.

As for the other challenges, the first has you defeat three dragons. These are hidden across each of the islands and it’s advisable to do this after you’ve done the first two challenges and killed the boss. This way you have the best armor and weapons for the chapter, which in turn makes killing the dragons easier.

Building a Cantlin garden is a bit more complex. This is a reference to a garden in the original Dragon Quest and requires a pond, some plants and a tree. As you cannot create water from scratch in the game, you have to bring it in from elsewhere. This is a bit tricky and is something you have to figure out depending on the layout of your base. It also tends to mean the garden is almost underground, the only thing there is that you need to have a door on the ground level to make sure the garden counts as a room.

As for repairing the Hammerhood’s graveyard, this requires you learn a recipe to build a gravestone on the third island and then bring that to an unfinished graveyard on the second island. Finding the graveyard on the second island is straightforward enough and you are given directions to find what you need from there.

One final piece of advice is that generally focus on the timed challenged first and then defeat the boss and exit the level. After that, you can go back and do the other challenges at your leisure.

Chapter 2: Rimuldar

The timed challenge on the second chapter is a bit more technical. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The challenges on this chapter are mostly straightforward, except for the first timed challenge of completing the chapter within 30 days.

The reason for this is twofold; the first is that the emphasis in this chapter is to heal various people from sickness. This requires an infirmary and each patient has various requirements in terms of their recovery.

Each of the patients will then rest one night until they make another request. Some have multiple items they require and this means they take as many days to get better.

This means you need to get all the patients into the infirmary at the same time, so you can heal them all simultaneously to save time.

The Hollyhock plants you have to grow in order to complete the final quest in the chapter. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The second reason this is a difficult challenge is that the final patient requires a potion that needs five Hollyhock plants. This turns into a quest where you have to defeat a dragon and then capture the last Hollyhock plant. This is then converted into two seeds and then has to be grown. To make five plants takes a few days, so be aware of the timing for this.

As for the rest of the challenges, they are all easy enough. Repairing the broken roof is undertaken on the second island and is fairly obvious. Completing all of Thalamus’ puzzles is worth doing as you do your playthrough though, as you get an accessory that protects you from all ailments.

Each of Thalamus' puzzles are located as stone structures on each island. On completion of the first three you are given a colored block, on the fourth island you need these blocks to complete the final puzzle.

Finally, obtaining the Crown Goowels is done by fishing in the slime shaped pond on the third island and fighting the King Slime that pops up. It's easy and quick to do.

This chapter starts to raise the stakes and makes it initially hard to get both food and medicine. On the former, just make your way to the desert on the first island and find some prickly peaches. These are next to cacti dotted across the desert. You will need a mallet to break through to the desert but it is worth doing once you get it.

The timed challenge is again a tricky one but not sleeping and getting coal and copper resources from the desert as soon as you can really helps speed things up.

That said, while killing all the trolls and gigantes is not necessary on your first run. Killing the green troll on the second island is recommended. This is because you get some useful accessories from chests nearby and they make progression quicker.

The Spectacular spa is probably the most complex blueprint in the game. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

Building the Spectacular spa is something I recommend you do after you have killed the boss and finished the chapter. However, before that make sure to leave some Medicinal shrubs and Ivy intact, as you will need them in the construction of the spa. You also need a special fountain and this is awarded for blocking a peephole in a bath on the second island.

The special slime lyre is also tucked away in a cave on the third island. You will need blue blocks to complete a slime outline to gain access to the cave. Once this recipe is unlocked, it can be used in every chapter in the game. Its purpose is to change the game’s music to the 8-bit original version used in the classic Dragon Quest games.

Final Chapter: Tantegel

The Hero's armor from the final chapter in the game. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The final chapter in the game and probably the easiest in terms of completing all the challenges, so much so that you can do them all on your first run through the chapter.

The timed challenge is done easily by avoiding sleep and finishing the first island as quickly as you can. Once on the second island, you can power up very quickly and it’s recommended that you focus on that before acquiring the Banner of Hope.

Once you have completed all the quests for the chapter and just have the final boss left, it’s worth hunting down the cursed armor on the first island. It is located in a cave atop the mountains behind your base.

The Verdant vision requires a bit of backtracking in order to complete. (Photo credit: Ollie Barder)

The layout inside the cave is quite complex and requires keys from enemies to progress. Once the armor has been attained, do not equip it. This is because once equipped it cannot be removed. However, if you use the sheen salts as they will destroy the armor.

The armor should only be used on the boss fight, as it makes the first part more manageable.

To kill the Dragonlord without the hero’s armor means you cannot use the Hero’s shield or Auroral armor, however the Sword of Kings is permitted. It's important you administer the final blow on the second part of the final boss fight without the hero's armor equipped in order to complete this challenge.

As for the Verdant vision, this is attained by speaking to three slimes atop mountains across the first three islands. Each requires a special plant and they award you with their dreams. On the final island, you then have to get a recipe from the King Slime, which requires the three dreams and more plants to make. Once you have made the Verdant vision bring it back to the King Slime to complete the challenge.

Speed Is Of The Essence

In general, the toughest of the challenges on each chapter is the timed one in terms of completion. Some are easier than others are but in general, they require you not to sleep and work through the night in order to finish on time.

You also need to make sure you kill the boss and make it to the portal for the next chapter in order to complete the timed challenge.

If you also want to keep track of how long you are taking, your current day count is listed in your Status menu.

In addition, it’s best to focus on the timed challenge on the first three chapters before attempting the other challenges. The exception to this is the final chapter, where you can do all the challenges at once.

Dragon Quest Builders is a great game though and I can still recommend it to everyone. After playing through the game now a third time in its entirety, it is safe to say it just gets better and better. So go and save Alefgard and make sure to get the slime lyre, as that brings backs the 8-bit music feels from the classic games.

I've also created a video explaining some of the above in more detail and that is shown below.